Damn Cursed Blades To Hell
by Life of Death
Summary: What happens when the new enemy of Gintoki and the Shinsengumi is a former ally? What happens when that someone is being torn apart himself? And what happens when he finally finds a way to rid them all of this burden? Gintoki and Hijikata centric, mostly Gin's perspective, not really romantic but I guess GinHiji if you squint? Reviews are highly appreciated :3
1. Prologue

Ok so um I'm back with another story, but it's shorter (by like a lot) and it's like an actual story instead of a book. This one is Gintama (as you probably already know)! So I recently got into that anime and immediately attached myself to Hijikata-San because I mean who wouldn't (also because he has zoros voice actor but shhhhhh), so yah, naturally I had to write something. Um it's still angsty as heck but I hope you enjoy anyway.

Ly all!

_Disclaimer: Gintama doesn't belong to me (again, I wish lol)_

* * *

**Prologue**

_The young man streaked through the shadows, the streetlights and waning moon the only things occasionally illumination his panting figure. He was looking for someone, someone very important, and he had to find them fast. There was something that he desperately needed to tell them, and this cannot wait, not even another minute, not even— _

_Except. Except… _

_He does not remember the one he so desperately seeks._

_He was so tired, his steps were stumbling, his breaths coming in short rasps that sawed into his throat, yet he kept running. Because he couldn't stop. It was impossible, his legs simply _had _to keep moving._

_His eyes swiveled, stormy blue taking in the surroundings that flew past in nothing more than blurs of color._

_Wasn't this the Kabuki District?_

_In the silence, his steps thudded across the dirt road, falling into rhythm with the strained pounding of his heart, the sounds thundering in his ears, until something stopped him so suddenly that he tripped over his own feet, landing face first into the dirt, coughing as his breaths brought dust into his heaving lungs. On unsteady arms he rose, dark hair falling into his eyes as he clambered up and leaned against a wall that had suddenly appeared at his back. When he finally caught his breath, he looked up, and found himself somewhere very, very familiar. Confusion clouded his eyes for a split second before the fog that had wrapped itself around his mind suddenly lifted, and he remembered who he wanted to find. They were right here, and adrenaline coursed through his body as he sprinted up the stairs, taking them two at a time, the wood creaking dangerously beneath his feet._

_Grabbing ahold of the handle to the door, he threw it open, a name forming on his lips as the frame crashed against the wall, the wood splintering and rattling in protest, but the sound stops dead before the first syllable can even make its way out. Gunmetal eyes widen in disbelief as the man beheld the signals that they now send to his brain._

_What were they doing here?_

_And what were those expressions on their faces?_

"_K—"_

_Once again, he was cut short as he felt the distinct coolness of metal seeping into the delicate skin on his neck, the familiar glint of a katana illuminating the darkness swimming in his peripheral vision. He didn't care._

_They shouldn't be here, these people, they're in danger, and in him rose the unexplainable need to protect them, protect them all, even that sadistic brat, but he's too late. They're in danger…_

_How?_

_Reality flickers for a split moment, and the world seemed to tremble before everything came back into focus, and the katana solidifies at his throat, the metal now digging into his skin._

_He didn't care._

_They were in danger._

"_Ko—"_

_The air escaped him in a rush as the one who held a sword to his throat drove a fist into his abdomen. He almost crumbled, but somehow stayed upright. A growl rippled out of him, but he didn't look back, every part of his soul was focused on the group in front of him whom he had come to call family, he couldn't see their eyes. Why couldn't he see their eyes? Long shadows fell over them, brown ones and red-tinted ones. And those smiles, what's up with those? They literally stretched from ear to ear, rows upon rows of too white teeth flashed in the dark, and he shook his head, the blade drawing blood as he pushed his neck into it._

"_I thought I told you to stop moving."_

_The voice that suddenly murmured from behind had him almost jumping of his skin, but confusion soon replaced the shock. When did this man ever tell him to stop moving? He didn't._

_But that voice… shouldn't he know it? No… but it sounds so similar. Was this who he was looking for? No, no it's not, it's not that stupid samurai who only uses a—_

_The thought was interrupted as he was jerked back by his hair, and the voice sounded again, this time infinitely louder and sounded like it was in his head more than anything._

"_You belong to me now, you hear?"_

_He heard, but he disagreed wholly. He didn't belong to anyone, he was a demon, and there wasn't anyone who could hold him down. Or at least, there wasn't supposed to be._

"_Mine."_

_It sounded serpentine, and if it wasn't for the hand that gripped the roots of his raven dark hair, he would have thought that it was a snake at his back. He thrashed, but the sword drove only deeper, though the voice sounded no more. Speaking of, why did it sound so much like _his_? And speaking of _that_, where was that stupid diabetic, this was his home, wasn't it? So why isn't he here? And why are they here? There were so many things that made absolutely no sense, and another growl-like sound escaped him in his frustration when suddenly everything changed, shifted like images in a movie, and he was no longer the one at the mercy of a blade._

_The hilt in his hand was unfamiliar. Too heavy, too rough, and too sticky…_

_Sticky?_

_The wound at his neck still bled, dripping a steady flow of red onto the gently swaying grass underfoot, joining with a larger stream that rose to his ankle. Disoriented, icy blue eyes traveled up the blood-stained blade in his hand to meet pain filled wine red ones, sunken into a too-pale face, strands of silver dancing in front of the bottomless whirlpool of maroon._

_A strangled scream ripped out of him, and he jerked the blade back, the voice coming back as he stumbled back from the figure that had fallen at his hand._

"_Mine~"_

* * *

The demon jolted awake in bed, blood staining the fabric beneath his neck, previously icy blue depths now an unsettling shade of the bloodiest red.

* * *

_Also I update weekly so feel free to come back next week if you enjoyed this smol chapter :3_


	2. Those Eyes

_**Those Eyes**_

Gintoki yawned as he padded down the wooden stairs and into the darkness under the Yorozuya, a trash bag in one hand and several volumes of his JUMP in the other, honestly, why couldn't someone else do this? It's in the middle of the night damnit! Didn't they realize how much Gin-San needs his beauty sleep? Letting out a sigh of exasperation, Gin was just about to head back to his sweet sweet futon when he had to take a dive to the ground in order to avoid the sudden assault of a blade, the metal taking off the tips of a few strands of hair.

"Oi!" Hands flew up to cover a head of silver. "Watch the hair!" The attacker, however, being the impolite person he is, didn't listen to Gin, and the perm head had to throw himself back to avoid another swipe of the katana. Seriously? The one time he didn't bring his wooden sword (why would he need to? He's just being a good person and throwing away the trash!) he gets attacked, the author _had_ to be messing with him, what is this? Plot convenience?! (Yes Gin, just go with it.) Taking another dive to the side, Gin successfully avoids another would-be fatal attack, only to end up smacking the side of his face into the stone wall, god, he forgot how narrow this stupid alleyway is. Blinking away the stars for a few seconds, the silver-haired samurai momentarily (somehow) forgot about the one that had been trying to kill him for the past five seconds and was met with a solid hilt to the back of the head that very effectively brought back the stars which had just disappeared.

As he fell forward, his surroundings swimming in and out of focus as consciousness slipped away, Gin's final thought was just how familiar that swordplay had seemed, so much like… like…

* * *

The chorus of yells and grunts filled the crisp morning air, with an authoritative voice calling out orders every once in a while, which are met with practiced "yes, sir!"s as the Shinsengumi followed through with their usual morning routine.

Wooden swords sliced through the air in trained synchronization, the bare chests of the men glistening with sweat even in the near freezing temperatures of an early February day, much thanks to the strict commander that now strolled amongst them, a glare given here and there to some brave soul who dared to slack off. However, no matter how brave they were, such souls always straightened their backs and swung with all their might under the wrathful gaze of the Demon Vice Commander. Ok, except for one, who, like usual, had a red sleeping mask covering his eyes and made it clear to anyone with the slightest bit of brain in them that he was sleeping, though he was still… swinging? Well, another scan of the yard tells us that on second thought, maybe there are two rebels. Some halfway across the field, another officer swung at empty air, though instead of a wooden sword clasped in his hand, he had a… badminton racket? Anyway, this poor thing was the one spotted first by his vice commander, and the enraged cry reverberated through headquarters as the spy had the good sense to sprint for his life.

"YAMAZAKIIII!"

Meanwhile, the young sadist found his chance, and as the chase continued outside the gates of the Shinsengumi HQ, with the commander catching up and still sprouting threats of seppuku, he hoisted his bazooka onto his shoulder and followed after them, leaving the troops watching wide-eyed, despite the exact same scenario playing out pretty much every morning, you'd think they would have gotten used to it by now. As he raced out the double doors, he glimpsed Kondo-San finally walking into the field, his expression an exact replica of the other officers as he caught sight of Sougo's running figure. The sadist internally sighed. Sometimes, he really did wonder how they came to be under the command of such a man. He does remind them once in a while though, just… not usually.

As he spotted Yamazaki's frantically running back, Sougo brought up the bazooka, loaded it, and placed his finger on the trigger, calling out a half-hearted warning in that drawn out voice he knew the vice commander hated.

"Hijikata-San, heads up."

The explosion went off just shy of the bridge under which Kondo-San fought for a woman and lost kind of miserably, accompanied by the usual roar from Hijikata and a startled yelp from Yamazaki. Right, he was there, Sougo forgot how the spy wasn't used to evading his attacks quite the way Hijikata was. As he wandered over, the bazooka still set on his shoulder, Yamazaki's panicked cry reached him, and an eyebrow cocked up lazily. What now?

As he drew closer, however, the cries didn't cease, and the eyebrow that had risen quickly descended into a frown. The hell? What's up with him? It's not like the bazooka hit him or anything, he was aiming for Hijikata. Quickening his pace, Sougo finally came within earshot, and as he made out what the spy was saying, his confusion grew, along with that dark curiosity he had, because you know, being a sadist and all.

"Fukuchou!"

Fun fun, that was a good hit, perhaps good enough to grant him the position of vice commander?

* * *

The spy entered a _bit_ of a panic when the bazooka went off, as, you know, most people would, but it really set in when the smoke cleared and he beheld the vice-commander on the ground, the katana long forgotten, the strangely heavy hilt creating a small crater in the earth, hands clutching at his raven hair as what Yamazaki assumed to be a headache pounded through his skull.

"Fukuchou!"

The spy grabbed ahold of the younger man's shoulders and tried to turn him so that he could look him in the eye, but the vice commander's eyes were closed, scrunched up as a small groan escaped his lips, which did nothing other than push Yamazaki's panic further. They were kidding, right? They had to be. This was the Demon Vice Commander of the Shinsengumi! A headache shouldn't be of this much bother to him… right?

Right?!

"Fukuchou! Pull yourself together!"

When still no response greeted him, Zaki turned to the advancing figure of the 1st division captain, the boy meandering closer with his hands still nonchalantly stuck in his pockets, red tinted brown eyes taking in the situation with a near bored air about him. As the sadist knelt down next to his superior, who still had yet to open his eyes since the ordeal started, Yamazaki scrambled out of the way, standing some distance away to watch the captain deal with the situation.

The silence stretched, long and torturous, broken only by the raspy breaths of Hijikata rattling through his throat. So, needless to say, the spy was more than willing to comply when Okita's voice finally sounded.

"Yamazaki, go back to headquarters and tell Kondo-San about this."

"Yes, captain!" Straightening in a rushed salute, the spy took off down the road back to the Shinsengumi and their commander, practically flying across the dirt in his haste. Sougo watched him go before turning his sight back to the dilemma at hand.

To put it gently, he was greeted with a surprising sight.

To put it bluntly, what he saw would haunt even the sadist's nightmares.

They found him on the riverbank that evening, half in and half out of the water, the blood a vibrant red in the light of the setting sun.

Just like those eyes.

* * *

"Gin-San! Gin-San!"

The boy's calls brought him back into the waking world, and Gin cracked open an eye. Honestly, isn't it a bit early to be waking up?

"Gin-San! You're awake!" Hmm, the boy seemed too relieved to be just waking him up from a nap, so what in the world happened? Just as he was about to make a move to get out of the futon, the boy caught him and shoved back down, a spike of pain dancing down his head into his spine.

"Oi! Be gentle!" The perm head scolded, rubbing the back of his head, one red eye peering up at the black haired boy with glasses from beneath the tangle of silver. Damn, this headache is really getting to him, exactly how much did he drink last night?

"Ah, sorry." The boy flinched before straightening and adjusting his glasses, and before he even started talking, Gin prepared for a long, winding monologue about alcohol and getting drunk and being too laid back and whatnot. Welp, he supposed that every anime needs a straight man. Plopping back onto his pillow, it was Gin's turn to flinch as the pain in his head flared again, a hand coming up to the spot and giving it a few good rubs, a mumbled question escaping as he did so.

"What in the world happened last night."

"Well, Gin-San, I was just getting to that, last nigh—" Poor thing didn't get very far before a small figure clad in red and carrying an umbrella burst through the door, wood splinters flying everywhere as she landed smack dab on top of Gin.

"Gin-Chan, you're awake!"

"Not anymore!" The glasses boy screeched, his arms flailing as he rushed to pull the girl off of the now-once-again-unconscious Gintoki. The girl refused to move, and instead stared down at Gin.

"Oi Shinpachi, don't be so over worried, Gin-Chan's absolutely fiiinnne." A strip of sukonbu surfaced from who knows where and found its way to the girl's mouth, and she continued sitting on top of the unfortunate samurai as she calmly sucked on her favorite snack.

"No he is not! He is absolutely NOT fine! Look at him, Kagura-Chan! Get off, get off!" Once again Shinpachi attempted to drag the girl off the founder of the Yorozuya, and she finally yielded, clambering off Gin and plopping down next to a giant white dog, leaning against his flank.

"Gin-San! Gin-San!" Slightly frantic, Shinpachi shook the older man, the naturally curly hair flopping this way and that in the process. Finally giving in, the boy sat down again, shooting a glare in Kagura's direction and then another distressed one at the ruined doorway. "Now we have to wait for him to wake up _again_, _and_ we have to somehow get a new door."

"Ok." Kagura simply quipped, settling down once more to eat more sukonbu.

"Ok?! What do you mean 'ok'?! We still haven't paid the rent yet! _And_ we haven't gotten a good job in months! How is 'ok' an ok response?!"

"Oi oi, you children really need to learn some bedside manners." The flat voice drawled from the bed, and the two broke apart from their surely about to ensue brawl (also known as Shinpachi getting his ass kicked by Kagura, but at his request we don't mention that).

"Ano Gin-San, bedside manners are the attitudes of doctors towards their patients, I don't think you're using it right."

"Details details, bed - side manners, manners that you do when you're at the side of someone's bed, it's that simple, how do you not get it?"

"Gin-San, I don't think that's how that works…"

"Whatever Shinpachiii," Kagura broke in. "Just tell Gin-San what happened so he can go buy us food!"

"Right, so, last night—"

"Wait wait wait," poor boy was interrupted again as Gin spoke once more. "Didn't the audience already see this part? They'll get bored if we do another flashback, just cut to some other scene or something. Oi author, are you listening?"

_Alright alright Gin I got it, cutting away in 3… 2… 1_

* * *

"Toushi, did you really…"

"Oi! Toushi! What are you—"

"TOU—"

* * *

Since they couldn't afford a doctor, the Yorozuya was a mess that day as the kids tried their best to wrap his head, which, in Gin's opinion, hurt him more than helped, but after much struggling and yelling and fighting, it was wrapped, and he at least felt a little better. Now, he was flopped on the couch, a volume of JUMP splayed out on his chest as dead fish eyes stared aimlessly up at the ceiling.

The place was strangely quiet. Kagura was out walking Sadaharu, and Shinpachi was buying food after much pestering by the Yato girl, even though it was really supposed to be Gin's turn, but since poor Gin-San's hurt, it's only reasonable for one of them to do it for him. Drawing in a deep breath, the silver-haired samurai released it in a rush as he recounted the events that occurred the night before, still trying to figure what had been so familiar about that sword.

Part of him knew, but that would mean something he really, _really _didn't want to think about. That blade the bastard had, he didn't know when he had gotten it, and he didn't really want to know, as long as it didn't directly involve him. Now though, it seemed that it was starting to.

No no, that dog food addicted idiot is better than this, it's not like he hadn't fought off a katana's curse before, but this one… this one is so much stronger, so much more otherworldly.

It's not that he didn't have confidence (well ok, obviously he wasn't confident, when was the last time that nicotine addict got anything right) in that man, but he just had _more_ confidence in the abilities of that curse, but then again—

His thought bubble was ruthlessly popped by the urgent rapping on the door of the Yorozuya, and red eyes cast a bored glance their way. Did Gin-San really feel like dealing with a customer right now? No he didn't, so he won't open the door. Let them think there's no one home. Maybe they can come another time.

The knocking stopped after some time, but soon started up again, even more desperate than before, and Gin groaned, not bothering to hide his displeasure. Even if he doesn't pay his rent, he's still the main character of this thing, he deserves some special treatment, don't you think? Anyway, just to get some peace and quiet, Gin dragged himself off the couch, the JUMP flapping onto the floor with the movement, and padded to the door, pulling it open with the intention to turn away whoever it was, but the words froze in his throat as he saw exactly who it was that needed his assistance so much.

In front of the Yorozuya stood Okita Sougo, covered from head to toe in bandages and leaning most of his right side on a wooden crutch that looked like it could fall apart at any moment, much like the man himself.

"Danna," the hoarse and cracked voice that came from his lips was certainly not one of the captain whose late sister was the only one who could subdue him, and Gin's demeanor quickly went from annoyance to one of high alert and even slight hints of fear. Quickly sidestepping, he gave the boy space to come in, but he stayed right where he is, the eye not smothered with bandages finding Gin's own and telling him the story before the young sadist even opened his mouth. "We need your help."

So that's how it was, huh?

Shitty Mayora.


	3. The Herder And The Bait

_Oops I'm one day late :p_

* * *

_**The Herder And The Bait**_

"Good. Very, very good." The voice drawled, a long, pale finger sliding across his chin and up his cheekbone to his ear. The man stood there, not moving a muscle, eyes a horrifyingly vacant red cast forward at nothing in particular. The finger that traced across his face soon came to rest at the base of his neck, where a small scar lingered, faded and barely visible. The hand stopped there, the exceptionally long nail resting at the edges of that mark, a chuckling vibrating through the darkness, yet the man did not move, his stillness rivaling that of a marble statue. "This…" It whispered, stray strands of raven hair ruffling as the source of that voice brought himself right next to the man's ear, each breath huffing uncomfortably into his ear.

The man does not react.

"This is a sign that you're mine, yes?" One pale green pupil contracted in raw pleasure, and the serpent licked its lips.

When the man did not respond, it didn't take long for the snake to convince him. The same hand that had been so gently tracing his skin was now a strangling weight at his throat, the other holding an unbalanced katana over his head, the hilt bringing the blade toppling in one direction more than the other.

"I asked you… You're mine now. Do you understand?"

Despite risks of strangulation and dismemberment, the man's voice remained eerily level.

"I understand."

"Good…"

The hand tightened, and the sword descended.

* * *

The Shinsengumi was in an uproar, that's all Gin could say. The moment he stepped through the gate the boy at his side collapsed, his strength as well as that crutch giving out at the same time, and the scarily sadistic 18-year-old was soon just a heap on the ground, with his fellow policemen rushing in from all sides. The spy and 3rd division commander headed the crowd, with the anpan-addicted one clearly frantic and most definitely about to have a panic attack. They swarmed towards and then around him, all fighting to get closer to their precious leader, who was soon rushed into the wooden houses, a few breaking from the group to dash off in another direction, surely to get the doctor.

Yet the orange-haired man remained, a silent presence at his side. Naturally, Gin took the liberty to ask away.

"What happened."

Out of nowhere, a sign materialized in front of him, the paper practically touching the tip of his nose. Gin blinked a few times at the sudden intrusion before peering at the samurai from the corner of his eye. Just as he thought, the man was pretty much thrusting the sign into his face, and when the commander seemed to notice that Gin wasn't looking at it, red eyes met red, and the sign was waved around quite impatiently. Rolling his eyes, the perm head turned his head back to the notebook, leaning back slightly so that he can actually read it instead of seeing random blotches of indecipherable black. The message consisted of a simple two words.

_You'll see._

Immediately afterwards, the afro policeman tucked the notebook away in one smooth motion and shot off in the direction that the rest of the men went in. Slightly intrigued, Gin wandered after Shimaru, soon finding himself having to push through what he assumed to be most of the Shinsengumi to get to wherever he'll "see" what happened. Heaving a sigh, he regarded the laborious journey he would have to make through the dark mass of bodies that seemed to extend for forever. Seriously, if this _isn't_ most of the Shinsengumi, he really needed to complain to the shogun about the existence of crimes in Edo.

Taking one last unwilling look at the obstacle before him, Gin started shoving and talking his way through the crowd, a gleam of silver amidst the black. As he got closer and closer to his target, the overly strong tang of blood hit his senses, and the silver-headed samurai almost gagged, alarm rising at an incredible rate. Gin's heart settled into an erratic pattern, and his pace quickened, urgency now etched into his every movement. He fought in the war, he saw people fall, he smelled blood, he heard the screams, he _killed his teacher_. Nothing of this sort should bother him anymore, he had long since numbed.

Finally, he pushed aside the last of the police standing in his way, and was greeted with the sight of two paramount figures of the Shinsengumi perched on the edge of death like a parrot on a branch overseeing a sheer cliff.

The wood was swaying, dangerously close to dropping the bird into the awaiting chasm.

On bloodstained futons lay Kondou Isao and Okita Sougo, beside them knelt a panicked Yamazaki, extremely unnerved Shimaru, and devastated Tetsunosuke. Standing behind was a man Gin assumed to be the doctor, talking in hushed tones with the grayed haired glasses man that the gorilla answered to. The samurai's unease soon deepened as he realized that the two men were securely bandaged, yet blood continued to seep through the white fabric, hence the stains on their mattresses.

Following that unease was anger.

Burning maroon eyes found those of Shimaru, and the question was shot across the room.

_What happened?_

Vaguely, Gin was aware that everyone had ceased movement, the doctor and high-ranking officer stopping in their conversation to stare at him along with everyone else. The 3rd division commander also seemed to notice, though the man was much more self conscious than Gin will ever be. Taking a quick scan around, Shimaru fidgeted nervously with a strand of his afro popping out of the side of his head before turning and raising a notebook to the superior commander person. What it said Gin didn't know and still doesn't, but whatever it was, the gray-haired man gave a nod, and the silent commander gestured for Gin to follow. Throwing one more glance at the unmoving shapes , one of which having dragged that mangled body across the city to get to his door and beg for his help, the perm head did, paying no heed to the eyes that followed him, fear and confusion alike burning into his back.

Once they've made it out of that room, the rage subsided, and the dead fish eyes, along with his signature slack expression, returned to Gintoki's face, which seemed to surprise the afro man when he turned to look at the samurai, perhaps he underestimated the silver warrior's control over his emotions. After blinking a few time, his face barely visible between the mask and the hair, Shimaru decided that whatever he was gonna do wasn't necessary anymore and continued along the wooden hallways of the Shinsengumi HQ. He came to a halt in front of doors barely hanging onto their hinges, and smell of blood once again overwhelmed the samurai following him. Though this time, Gin managed to keep his cool.

The commander moved to the side, red eyes fixed on the guest of the HQ as similarly colored ones took in the scene that lay sprawled out in front of him. Fists clenched at his side, but that was as far as Gin went in showcasing his discomfort.

He raised a sign, flapping around the notebook for a few moments so to get the samurai's attention.

_Kondo-San's office._

Gin nodded before turning his full attention back to what lay in front of him, his usually laid back gaze intense as he tried to make sense of the blood splattered space. He took a few steps in, careful not to slip on the red substance covering the floor, and scanned the room one more time.

It was a mess.

The desk was knocked over onto its side, drawers from a nearby file cabinet were pulled out and laying in such a way that it almost seemed as if someone had thrown them, utilizing them as a weapon. One had even landed on the other side of the room, laying lonely on its side against the wall, papers spilling out of it. Speaking of, papers: letters, reports, notes, pictures, were strewn across the floor, some having flown off the desk and some out of the drawers. And almost every single one was stained with blood.

The stuff was _everywhere_.

It appeared in strange patterns across the space, having splattered across most of the wood floor and in some places up the walls and even to the ceiling. It also pooled more in some places, like the victim had been detained there longer. Seemed that the gorilla had tried to run, attempted to fight back, as evident by the katana that lay pitifully on its side in a corner, the blade snapped cleanly in half, though to no avail. This time, his enemy had simply been too strong.

Or perhaps he wasn't willing to hurt them.

His precious Toushi.

Gin knelt down next to the broken blade, adding his footprints to the messy ones zigzagging across the red lake, and examined a particularly eye catching puddle residing next to it. All this while, the expression on his face didn't change a millimeter. Red reflected in red, and Gin looked back at Shimaru. As expected, the man had a sign ready.

_It's where we found him._

Gin didn't have time to respond before the wall directly adjacent him shattered, splinters soaring as something crashed into the room, flying over his head to land with a sickening "thud" on the ground (good thing he had been squatting), red spraying as it, no, _he_, slid into the opposite wall. Gin eased to his feet, eyes once again locking with that of the Shinsengumi commander, who soon took off back the way they came as he too registered who exactly had been tossed into headquarters like a rag doll. As footsteps faded, Gin recomposed himself before sauntering over to the collapsed figure.

"Better get up soon," he drawled, his voice constructed in that way he _knew_ that bastard hated. "Didn't your mother ever teach you to not sleep in too much? My, my, you're really just an obnoxious little kid, huh. Am I right, Oogushi-Kun?"

No response.

Of course not, the man was pretty much dead, but… something was off. Something was unsettling Gin, and as he drew closer, a hand instinctively found the handle of his wooden sword. "Oi, mayora."

He was close enough to see the labored rising and falling of his chest now, the room now even redder thanks to the nicotine bastard, going off and getting himself cursed then tortured. This stupid police force _really_ needed a new vice chief, heck, maybe even Souchiro-Kun. Shrugging, his shoulders too tense in the supposedly casual movement, Gin squatted once more, a hand going to prod at the fallen man, the other still stubbornly resting on his hilt of his katana. Wooden it may be, but god knew what he could do with it if he tried. His finger made contact with the body, and gave a it a good poke, resulting in a sharp intake of breath and then a fit of coughing, before a blood red eye cracked open.

Wait a minute.

Even the speed of the Shiroyasha could not have saved him from what happened in the next few seconds, the speed and style of the sword too familiar from the incident just one night before. A katana, one he already could tell was unbalanced, flew from the side of the vice commander and lodged itself in his abdomen, the pain coming in like it always did, a tsunami crashing onto shore, drowning out any and all other nuisances, following waves making sure to wash away anything still stubborn enough to be alive. Except this time, accompanying that tsunami was a wall of pure, blistering fire.

Gin choked on his own blood, a rush flowing down his chin and dripping onto the floor. Joy, now this office had the evidence of three people's brush with death.

The hand on his katana wavered, but Gin kept it there, the fingers finding the strength to curl around the hilt and pull the thing out, the words carved into the material now splotched with red. However, before he could make any move to attack, the shitty mayora jerked the blade back, and Gin went crashing forward. He would have landed right on top of the other man, but the cursed swordsman shot out of the way, his body somehow still supporting him despite the injuries that it showed prominent signs of sustaining.

Maybe curses came with _some_ nice things.

Gin instead fell head first into the splinters, the wood piercing into the skin on the side of his face as he managed to twist at the very last second. For a few moments, he simply lay there, rendered immobile by the newly gained wound and the winding fall, and for those few moments the room was completely and utterly silent. So much so that the samurai could hear the _drip drip_ of the blood sliding from a cursed katana behind him, his attacker standing, almost as if he was keeping a vigil, still as a marble statue.

Taking a deep breath and calming whatever was raging in his body, Gin dragged himself back onto his feet and faced a friend-turned-enemy. "What do you want?"

Vibrant blood red eyes found darker maroon ones, and the cursed katana stuck once more, only this time, its target wasn't on Gin, it was skewed, ever so slightly aimed at his left so that the silver samurai was forced to dive right in order to avoid the attack, now within jumping distance of the hole in the wall. Another soon followed, halting barely a millimeter in front of his chest, forcing him once more to jump back, landing sloppily on the grounds of the Shinsengumi headquarters, red still dripping, and soon, it pooled at his feet. This stupid wound, shouldn't be bleeding this much. Gin could have sworn that any other time, it would have taken a good three stabs of the same intensity to get this much blood out of him, yet that bastard had somehow done it with one.

Stupid cursed swords.

It didn't take him very long to figure out what the bastard was trying to do. Shitty mayora was herding him. Gin took two more leaps back and left to avoid more coming assaults, all controlled perfectly as to not pierce his flesh but enough to force him to move.

Fine then, he'll play this game.

Being as cooperative as he could with a blade constantly at his back (or throat, or waist, or front, or everywhere), Gin allowed the man to herd him into the forest, the darkness a living monster that soon swallowed up the two swordsmen, leaving only a lonely trail of blood to symbolize that they had ever been there at all.

They must have had been doing it for hours, the herding and whatnot, and when his herder finally stopped and Gin was left by himself in the middle of a cave, the samurai was near depleted, leaning on the cold, black wall for support as he gasped for breath, a hand going to the injury in order to put pressure on it. Stupid thing was still bleeding. Hell, even for an anime this was going a bit overboard. Shaking his head to get the silver strands out of his eyes, Gin looked up and straight into the eye of Takasugi Shinsuke.

One thought flitted through his head as the maniacal smile he had come to be so familiar with graced his former comrade's face, stretching from ear to ear, and a choking hold crushed him against the wall.

_Shit._

* * *

_Um yah, as I'm sure you can tell, I'm so much more familiar with One Piece characters then Gintama ones （ ´Д｀）, so pls tell me if I got any of them out of character so I can fix them in coming chapters :3_

_Thanks for reading!_


	4. Bastard's Still Fighting

**Reviews :3**

Kurokono Tasuke - _Well I mean, under normal circumstances he probably wouldn't have? But like I mentioned in the description, there are certain... implications, in the story, take it however you will ;)_

_Also thank you for reviewing uwu!_

* * *

_**Bastard's Still Fighting**_

Gintoki flew across the space, his instincts desperately trying to twist his body as to avoid a possibly fatal collide with the opposite wall, finally resulting in a narrow save as his feet made contact with the stone. Gin shoved, bouncing back onto the ground, rolling to reduce the impact and shooting back up, promptly ignoring the blood that he had left splattered across the cave floor. Once again he faced a man who hated him for fulfilling a promise and breaking another. The wooden sword was grasped in his hand, and he watched, slightly wary, as the man advanced, slowly, casually, a pipe held lightly between his fingers and a small smile dancing on his lips.

He almost looked like he _wasn't_ about to kill someone.

Wine red eyes narrowed, and he too straightened from his stance, the wooden katana drooping to the ground. Takasugi kept his pace, taking his sweet sweet time in making it across the cave, but when he finally did, he halted a hair's breadth away from Gin, their noses almost touching, and whispered two words in that darkly breezy way of his, "be careful~"

Narrowed eyes widened, looking down in slight confusion to the blade that once again pierced his body, the blood a dark red.

"It matches your eyes." The man in front of him breathed, the ghost of a smile solidifying. A pale green eye found something over Gin's shoulder, and Takasugi gave a subtle nod.

The sword was pulled out, but slowly, so incredibly slowly, the metal rubbing against flesh, hell being released every inch of the way. Gin bit down. Like hell he was going to make a sound. Then, after what seemed like an eternity, it was out, and as much as he hated to do so, Gin fell, his knees slamming against the rocky ground as too familiar boots came into view and that very same katana touched his chin, a slow drip of blood flowing as skin broke once more. Whoever held the blade knelt, and Gin looked into formerly storm blue eyes before Hijikata leaned in, his mouth positioned right next to Gin's ear, and murmured words that the samurai least expected to hear.

Then the man rose, his arm tensing, and brought the katana swinging up, leaving a bloody gash on Gin's chin before it descended again, though slower than it should have, just barely, but slow enough that Gin knew those two words weren't faked. Slow enough to allow a small red umbrella to jab into its path and flinging its wielder backwards, where he was met with a solid kick as the remaining two members of the Yorozuya took their places in front of their boss. Yet instead of annoyance, what played on Takasugi's features almost resembled amusement, and he snapped his fingers. However, it quickly fell away when his puppet failed to come to his side. Emitting an exasperated sigh, the one-eyed man strolled over to the vice commander, who leaned against the wall, arms buckling under the dead weight of his body as he struggled to rise, and Gin watched as a former friend roughly grabbed the hair of a present one and yanked upwards. The victim noticeably clenched his teeth to keep from yelping out loud in pain, and Gin almost rose once more to go to his aid, though the attempt only succeeded in reminding him how bad of a shape his own body was in, and soon enough, a concerned Shinpachi knelt next to him, keeping him from truly crashing onto the ground, while Kagura continued her stand against the enemy. The last things the silver samurai saw before his own consciousness ebbed were the momentarily hateful storm blue eyes, and the last things he heard, kept hearing, were the two words that the raven-haired commander had whispered to him before the curse forced him into action.

_I'm sorry._

* * *

If someone had asked him what he had been doing there, Gin wouldn't have known either, but he had somehow found himself back at the Shinsengumi headquarters, a forgotten volume of JUMP flopped over his head, kind of but not really shielding his eyes from the blinding light of the sun. The gorilla stood behind him, likewise wrapped in bandages and staring off into who knows where, their minds on one person and one person only.

When the commander had been allowed outside the doctor's sight just the day before a week after the whole ordeal started, the first thing he did was pay a visit to the Yorozuya, probably informed by one Shimaru of what had taken place while he and Sougo had taken their three-day nap. Rest assured, the man remembers full well what had resulted in that and exactly who had attacked him, yet unrivaled concern still clouded his gaze, perhaps because Gin had informed him of the curse that now reigned of his precious second. Though… even if he hadn't, Gin had a feeling that the gorilla would worry anyway, even if the shitty mayora had attacked and nearly killed not only him but the sadistic one as well.

As if reading his thoughts, the Shinsengumi commander voiced a question that had been quietly plaguing everyone who knew of the incident.

"Why didn't he kill us?"

If he had asked Gin before that day in the cave, maybe the samurai wouldn't have known, or maybe, even if he did have a guess, he wouldn't have shared it. Better not to get their hopes up before it could be confirmed. Now is a different story.

"The bastard's still fighting."

"He is?!" Just like that, the overly loud and obnoxious man was back, and the commander sounded as if he had just discovered the One Piece or something. Seriously though, if he had that much faith in his vice commander, did it really _never_ occur to him that the nicotine addict was fighting that stupid curse? Damn, the gorilla was stupider than Gin thought, and it was moments like this when Gin seriously wondered how the Shinsengumi came to put their lives in the hands of such a man.

Currently a bit too lazy to deal with said man's happy outbursts, Gin simply nodded, the JUMP flitting off his head with the movement and landing with a small flop on the dirt, the pages were messed up, and Gin had surely lost his place, something he couldn't bring himself to care about right now but knew he was going to regret one day.

"Would you take the job of bringing him back?" The older man had seemingly calmed down, but Gin didn't answer the question, instead shooting back one of his own.

"Why not do it yourself?"

"Do you see us? Sougo and I are in no shape to deal with that man, especially if he has Toushi at his side."

"Don't you have another like, thousand people?"

The commander was silent for a moment before he replied, and the next words that came from his mouth were so un-gorilla-y that Gin turned to look at the man, an eyebrow cocked at the way that voice had sounded.

"They're lost without him."

Tch, that mayora, he's got more than enough people at his back, why can't he just do something _with_ them for a change, instead of going at it by himself and making everyone worry. Because yes, if the bastard really tried, that curse wasn't going to keep him from coming back and asking for their help as _him_. But no, Oogushi-Kun's too stubborn for that.

When Gin didn't respond, the man behind him continued. "We haven't heard from them in a while."

"It's only been a week."

"Have there been earthquakes recently?" The sudden deviation from the topic at hand drew Gin's gaze back to the big man once more, the lowered eyebrow once again shooting back up, even though it somehow didn't change the ever slack expression. Seriously, _that_ was considered a skill.

"What?" Anyone else probably would have taken that as a solid "no", but the gorilla didn't seem very good at taking hints.

"Earthquakes, have there been any recently."

"No, Ketsuno Ana said there isn't."

_(Gin she's the weather girl she doesn't talk about earthquakes)_

"I mean, there's been several here in the past week."

Gin shrugged. "Probably just you being paranoid." Behind the casual gesture though, gears were spinning. Perhaps this had something to do with the sudden disappearance of Oogushi-Kun and his current… captor? Master? Ah who knows who cares. Anyway, Gin'll probably look into that later if he had the energy (which he highly doubted he will, but planning ahead is never a bad thing).

The perm head sighed, the JUMP falling off again with the movement, though this time he didn't bother with picking it up. Behind him, Kondo didn't have a response, so he let the silence drag on.

It continued for hours, and the sun was beginning its trip beyond the horizon, the sky darkening as clouds moved in. But it was only when the world was set ablaze by the vibrant red and orange and yellow of the dying sun, when a head of normally silver hair was bathed in red, that Gin finally spoke once more.

"How much are you going to pay me?"

* * *

It had been a month and nothing. The Yorozuya trio had probably been working for the hardest in a while. For what, who the hell knows, but Gin's just gonna tell himself that it's for the reward that Kondo had promised, since he was already really behind on his rent and the old deva was definitely gonna kill him if he didn't pay it by the end of this month (to be fair, she threatened the end of this _week_ but Gin was sure he could stall some more).

His boots thudded across the dirt, the empty strawberry milk container held loosely in his right hand (they really make these drinks _way_ too small), the evening sky strangely gloomy despite Kestuno Ana's predictions of a sunny day, and her predictions are obviously _always_ accurate. His left hand was dangling from his kimono while the abandoned sleeve flopped uselessly in the wind. Behind him, two pairs of footsteps echoed his, the boy, the dog, and the girl an ever present presence at his back. Shinpachi, as usual, seemed concerned, while Kagura, lucky girl ever relaxing on top of Sadaharu, seemed for once lost deep in thought, sucking calmly on her sukonbu. They were both surprisingly quiet that day.

"Gin-Chan."

Ahhh he shouldn't have jinxed it.

"Eh?" His pinky had found its way to his nose, and he let it pick for a moment before flicking whatever there was to the side.

"Do you think the mayo's still alive?"

Something in Gin's expression tensed at that, but it was quickly schooled back into casual neutrality, followed by a shrug. "As sad as it is, probably, bastard's way too stubborn." Casting a bored glance back, Gin saw Kagura nod absentmindedly before dog and boy halted suddenly and simultaneously. Confused, Gin looked back forward but didn't cease walking, which he soon regretted when his feet carried him face first into a wooden door. Stumbling back, the samurai shot the door a glare, and was about to turn and interrogate the kids on why they didn't warn him when he noticed which doors these were and his mood plummeted.

"The hell are we doing here." He mumbled before turning away from the Shinsengumi headquarters, walking between Shinpachi and Kagura as he made to go back to the Yorozuya. The glasses boy's voice stopped him.

"Gin-San, are you OK?"

"Why not?"

"Ever since Hijikata-San went missing, you've been kind of…"

"Weird." The yato girl chimed in, earning herself a glare from Shinpachi.

"Tsk, you children really like overthinking things, don't you." Gintoki half turned to look at them, chucking the empty carton to the side. "Gin-San's just tired of having to save his ass again. If this continues any longer, the audience will definitely get bored."

Almost at the same time, they tilted their head to the side, doubt etched plainly into their features. Hell, even the oversized dog was playing along. However, before Gin could say another word in his defense, an explosion rocked the earth, throwing all four of them onto the rock hard ground, and Gin registered what had happened before he even hit the ground.

The overly happy voice that piped from above them was the evidence if nothing else.

"My, my, have you come to join the party?"

The Kiheitai certainly knew how to throw one.

* * *

_Next chapter may be out a bit late cuz it's long and I've been procrastinating on it oops. I'll try to get it done asap though :3_


	5. Oh Look, It's Raining

_Like I warned last time, this chapter is a bit late (sorry), but hey, at least I got it out right? But yah, I finished this like yesterday and am literally uploading it in my first period biology class rn sooooooo_

_Anyway, hope you guys enjoy the second to last chapter and have a good_ _day!_

**Reviews :3**

Anon - _So glad you're enjoying it :DDD_

_FAIR WARNING EVERYONE BLOOD AND SOME CURSING INVOLVED_

* * *

**_Oh Look, It's Raining_**

"Kamui." Kagura was the first to react, as expected, her lips curling in a half snare upon seeing her older brother. "What are you doing here?"

"You want to know?" The yato boy hopped off the wall and promptly kicked open the gate of the Shinsengumi, the wood shattering beneath his feet. "Why not see for yourself?" Standing to the side, he gestured for them to enter with a mocking half bow, the fake smile that crinkled his eyes still plastered on his face as the three bolted past him, though his leg stuck out, and as his little sister rushed past, it sent her crashing to the ground. The two in front whirled to look, but Kagura was already on her feet, a fist sailing through the air towards Kamui, who effortlessly avoided it and sent forward a punch of his own, though his sister evaded it with similar ease. Wine red eyes narrowed, then hardened, and Gin turned and plunged into the mess of bodies and screams that was currently the headquarter of the Shinsengumi.

However, his heroic serious scene was cruelly cut short when he had to leap into the air like a startled cat to avoid falling into a giant hole that yawned open, in fact, the several holes that gaped on the field. As Gin regained his footing and looked around, lines were drawn in his mind, and the dots connected.

As if on cue, another explosion rocked the buildings and walks, sending many people staggering to the ground, some falling shrieking into the traps laid out for them. _This_ was what they had been up to for the past month. _This_ was why silence was all that greeted them whenever they tried to find the stupid mayo freak. _This_ was the cause of those strange tremors that the gorilla spoke of. They had been working underground, digging traps, planting landmines, and now, those traps had sprung.

Kiheitai and alien soldiers rushed upwards from the ground, ten for each mine laid, and hundreds more dropped from the skies, coming from an enormous battleship that had suddenly taken shape above them, blocking out the sun, the sky, and the clouds.

A _CRASH _and panicked "Gin-San!" had him whirling and barely avoiding a blade before his own was out, the wood slamming into the assailant's stomach and sending him flying across the field, knocking over a line of his comrades as he went. Gin then looked up to see the source of the noise, and was greeted with the sight of the yato girl struggling defiantly in the choking hold of her older brother, who had rammed her through the stone wall, his still smiling features barely visible behind the flying dust. And right as the silver samurai instinctively rushed forward, two things changed his mind.

The first was the yato girl herself, who quickly composed herself and sent a kick to her brother's wrist, an audible "crack" sounding as the hand drew back at lightning speeds, the girl falling onto the debris. Gin shook himself, should have trusted her, despite her usual nature, the girl was a formidable opponent when she wished. The second thing, however, unnerved (yes, unnerved, because even Gin-San is capable of being unnerved when the situation is _that_ bad) him, and he soon turned to see the reason for the scream that came from the fighting and quickly tiring gorilla.

"TOUSHI!"

The man stood on the wall surrounding his home, red eyes scanning the crowd with an eerie sense of purpose. He no longer wore the Shinsengumi jacket and scarf, instead standing in the bitter cold in only his shirt and vest, the always present cigarette missing. If Gin was being honest, the idiot certainly _looked_ fine, or… seemed so at first glance. As the perm head soon discovered, he needed only to look at the Demon Vice Commander for a few seconds longer before he saw that the man was quite the opposite of fine. Hijikata practically quavered where he stood, the hand grasping the katana trembling uncontrollably, and when Gin squinted, he realized that what darkened the commander's white shirt wasn't the clouds or the shadow of the ship, but blood. Old, crusted blood from wounds long past that had not been properly treated, injuries that Gin soon realized came from a month ago, when he was used as both the herder and the bait to draw him to that cave. The realization only made the empty blood red eyes less and less like that of the stupid dog food addict that butted heads with him on absolutely _everything_. So when those eyes found Gin's own wine red ones, the silver samurai didn't hesitate a second in following after the demon that had leapt off the wall and into the darkness.

As he raced after the man, Gin's annoyance grew, because chasing someone wearing black in the dark is a lot harder than you would think, especially if the one white thing they're wearing is _also_ colored dark by their own blood.

Yah, _really_ didn't help the mood very much.

_Crap._ As Gin regained his full attention and tried to fix it once more on the man he had been paid to take back (because that's the one reason Gin-San's chasing him through the cold dark woods right now when he could totally be drinking strawberry milk in nice warm Yorozuya), only to find that said man had disappeared into the night. Mentally slapping himself but also wishing he could physically do that to the stupid mayo that's making him go through this completely unneeded ordeal, Gin kept running, because at least it keeps him warm. Soon however, he found that he apparently made the right choice.

Breaking the cover of the trees, Gin stumbled into what appeared for all its worth like an abandoned harbor, promptly taking a face plant as the toe of his boot caught on the subtle crack between the mushy soil of the forest and the sudden emergence of concrete ground. Groaning, the samurai rolled over, rubbing the ridge of his nose. "I swear this author is sadistic," he muttered as he unhurriedly brought his feet under him and plopped down cross legged on the ground. "Gin-San was perfectly capable of catching himself from that fall, why did he have to fall? Eh?" Now he would have glared at whoever he was taking to, but since I'm the all powerful narrator who is invisible to the characters, he can't, so instead Gin just glared at a random blade of grass and turned his attention back to the situation at hand, only to find them barely a blade's length away. The katana had switched masters again, and is now grasped in pale nonchalant fingers, the blade crossing the throat of one whom it had forced to hurt the people he called family. Instead of freaking out like, you know, literally _any_ other anime character would have done, though, Gin sat there and looked up at the leader of the Kiheitai, giving a few blinks.

"Ahh, there you are."

The corner of Takasugi's eye twitched, and some part of Gin had to hold in a laugh at how successful he was at annoying this man, seems like all those years of dealing with him had paid off after all.

"You took way too long to find." Gin didn't hesitate in working the start of a whine into his voice, his hand going to ruffle his hair, messing up the mess even more. "I can totally be drinking strawberry milk right now."

"Emotionless as ever, I see." His enemy snorted, pressure on the katana driving it to draw a thin trickle of blood on pale skin, still Gin remained sitting, his hand in his hair.

"Eh," he shrugged, keeping his eyes locked on the pale green and as dead fish as they ever were, only hoping that perhaps that's enough to fool his old friend of the turmoil happening beneath the calm exterior. Gods damned, why wasn't that bastard fighting the stupid curse?!

"Oh Gintoki, but are you really?" Gin looked back at Takasugi (man, he really was getting oddly distracted today) only to barely suppress a jolt that tried to make its way down his spine. The katana was too close, one movement and the mayo's windpipe will pop, and as Takasugi made to do just that, Gin shot up, his outraged scream for the commander to keep fighting ringing across the harbor.

It might have been his imagination, though he's never doubted his eyes before, but Gin could have sworn that those of the vice commander shifted, the red darkening to purple then to a gray that resembled both the sky overhead and his natural eye color. However, as Takasugi laughed, the man stepping back and releasing the katana in one swift motion, eyes solidified back into blood red, and Hijikata's hand curled around the hilt before wood clashed sickeningly with metal, thunder rumbling its way across the sky. Somehow, it couldn't spare Gin's ears from whispered words.

"I know what you care about, Gintoki."

So much so that it was annoying.

* * *

Gin barely managed to keep the blade from lodging itself in his stomach for a second time, though it grazed his side anyway, immediately opening a gash, blood pouring out in way larger amounts than it should be, when Takasugi spoke again.

"A nice katana isn't it, Gintoki?" The man he addressed ignored him, though it didn't seem to discourage him any. "Beautifully made," Gin blocked another strike and snarled at its wielder. For a split second, those eyes changed again, this time more completely to the annoying gunmetal blue. "Especially the handle, forged from the lightest material the swordsmith had." The next strike that came at Gin rang with hesitation and reluctant obedience, allowing him to easily evade it. So he _was_ fighting. "The curse made it heavy though, such a pity, a perfectly good katana made unbalanced." Gin blocked another assault and shot back one of his own, which landed flawlessly, the Shinsengumi commander staggering back from the hit to the chest, a gasp sawing its way out of his throat, though a small smile danced on the corner of his mouth. Eyes shifting once more, except this time, words formed on his lips, and if there was one thing Gin could say about it, it was that it did _not_ help. At all.

_Kill me. _

"Allows you terrifying abilities, my favorite of which would be dreamwalking and mind control. Comes in very handy, I must say." That bastard _really_ needed to shut up, he's being incredibly distracting. Between indignant thoughts, Gin clashed with the vice commander several times in a matter of seconds before they both sprang back, demons circling each other, looking for an opening. Black and white. Yin and Yang. Then they charged, Gin immediately finding himself at a disadvantage as the hilt, supposedly containing that curse, rammed into his chest, the wound that had yet to heal ripping open as the samurai stumbled back, a trickle of blood escaping his mouth. When he looked up once more, he found that Hijikata wasn't moving, just standing there, the tip of his blade barely touching the ground, rage in his gunmetal blue eyes.

"You bastard…" Gin barely heard it, but the commander's voice trembled, it quavered with the effort to not lose to the curse that bound him through the blade he wielded. "I told you to kill me, didn't I?" When Gin didn't respond, his legs refusing to support him as he tried to rise, the stupid curse giving the sword too much power over its victims, Hijikata's voice rose, both in volume and in anger.

"_Didn't I?!_"

Gin huffed out a laugh. "So what if you did?"

"Then why are you holding back…"

"_WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU HOLDING BACK?!_" His voice rose to a screech as the curse took hold once more and his eyes made their transition to swirling purple. The hilt came at him once again, yet Gin did not fight back. It caught him in the second yet-to-heal injury. Blood sprayed, and Hijikata's voice sounded again, so strained it practically forced Gin to listen. "I'm not strong enough, Gintoki." The hopelessness in it brought a growl to his throat, yet still the silver samurai did not fight back, and the blade caught him in the side of the face.

The red blinded him.

"Don't you get it?" The voice still sounded, alternating between far and near as the curse forced the commander into continuously assaulting his rival, darting in and out, in and out. Each time, a new patch of red would stain the silver kimono. "I can't fight this curse, so I need you to fight it for me." Step by step by step, Gin found himself at the edge of the wooden bridge, one more and he would fall into the ocean, so he finally steadied himself on shaking legs, wine red eyes looking up at purple ones. "Why won't you just kill me… Why can't you just _see_ that I can't fight this damned thing."

Gin smirked as Hijikata charged him once more, and as he saw a hint of horror enter the conflicted purple gaze, as he saw it turn into raw rage and determination, Gin stood, closed his eyes, and raised the bokuto.

"Decide that for yourself."

He was a moron, that's for sure, but he wasn't exactly very keen on suicide either, _and_ he would _very_ much like to see the mayo prove himself wrong. Not strong enough? Pft, who was he kidding, this is a comedy anime, they need to get back on track soon.

Gin's brows furrowed, the only sign of his nerves that he'll ever show. Hijikata was close, close enough that he could feel the cold presence of the blade at his chest, close enough he could feel something pressure the tip of his bokuto as the commander's shoulder pressed up against it. It was then that Gin wondered whether he was going to be the one proven wrong after all. He supposed he brought this upon himself when he decided to trust that unreliable bastard. But what if Gin found that he didn't mind too much.

Of course, dying at the hands of that dog food addict doesn't seem like the best end for the main character, but maybe it's a way to finally stop running.

How selfish-

The presence and pressure disappeared, and something crashed against Gin's hand. The bokuto flew, and another katana was instead thrust into its place, followed by a jolt backwards as someone using the momentum to run himself through, the blade sinking in up to the hilt, penetrating the skin and fabric on his back. One foot stepped back, hovering over the vast expanse of water, hovering over oblivion, before Gin pulled himself away.

"You're wrong again, you shitty mayora, and Gin-San was right." Wine red eyes opened to meet gunmetal blue, and he jerked the blade out of his heart. It landed with a _thud_ next to him.

Then Hijikata fell without uttering a sound, and Gin went with him, dropping to his knees, barely managing to catch the raven before his head hit the cement. Through the red haze of blood that still hung over his eyes, the samurai saw that tired eyes have closed, and almost through pure instinct, he shook the man, a hand going to press against the hole over his heart.

"Oi… wake up."

When the commander offered no response, Gin found that some small seed of desperation had planted itself into his heart.

"Oi! Wake up! Wake up you nicotine bastard! Wake up!"

The voice that answered almost made him regret ever talking in the first place.

"If I didn't know… better, I would say… that you're… worried."

At least it was the confirmation Gin needed that he was still alive, though he didn't know why he needed it in the first place. Annoying bastard was too stupid to find his way to the light even if he did die.

"Tch, you shitty mayora" Gin snorted at the response. "You overestimate your importance." If he could _just_ get the man to snap back a response, his heart would drop from his throat and things can go back to normal. And in case anyone wanted to know, it can get really uncomfortable when one's heart stays there for too long, blocking off the air flow and all.

For the first time, the raven disappointed.

"Well… that's one… less thing to… worry about." As those eyes began to close once more, Gin spoke again, like hell he was gonna let this man fall asleep.

_And never wake up._ The small voice in the back of his head nagged, but Gin ignored it.

"But you're not allowed to die either. If you do, the gorilla is most definitely _not_ going to give me my money."

Blue eyes focused slightly at the mention of the man who had earned his unwavering loyalty, and the struggle was evident as Hijikata forced his vocal cords to work for just a little while longer.

"K- Kondo… San…" Gin's worry grew with the fading of his voice, but he schooled his expression back into one of usual carelessness, about to shoot back a response when he was interrupted with what could have been a chuckle that was cut short by a fit of coughing. Gin's teeth clenched, and his arms moved of their own accord as they brought the man closer, a tremble that hadn't stopped since he had seen him atop the wall of the Shinsengumi now increased enough to cause a visible shaking. The idiot talked anyway, despite the trickle of red that now made its way down from his lips.

"I suppose… I do need…" He stopped, putting his entire focus into breathing for a few seconds. "To tell them… a few things." He exhaled, yet the inhale that followed did not do nearly enough to replenish his lungs. The bastard… the effort he's putting into something so simple was too obvious for Gin's liking. Where did the man go who made excuses as stupid as being caught in a spinning door to hide that he received wounds in battle? Where did he go?! What Gin said reflected none of rage and, if he would ever admit, fear.

"Exactly, so-"

"The brat can finally be… the vice commander. Tell him… that, will you?" His eyes had narrowed to cracks, the eyelids too heavy, yet he kept them open, because he too, Gin realized, knew the consequences of closing them. As for his question…

Nonsense.

"No, because you're going to-"

"One more… thing, you stupid…diabetic." He stopped again, a breath getting stuck as it rattled into his throat, and the commander was consumed once more by a bout of coughing, the sudden movements only increasing the amount of red that seeped from between Gin's fingers, a futile attempt, the samurai knew, to stop the blood doomed to flow. As the pained eyes closed for an agonizing few seconds, Gin found his heart beating onto his rib cage like a wild beast pounding against its restraints, only calming when Hijikata forced himself awake once more. His eyes were barely open, the color a dull and lifeless gray, yet still Gin let out the breath he had been holding, trying desperately not to let his ever more complicated emotions show on his features. But when the bastard opened his mouth to speak once more, Gin allowed some to show in his answer.

"Tell them I… said goodbye…"

"No." The rejection of his message brought slight alertness back into the tired commander's eyes, and the drooping eyelids lifted ever so slightly. Gin held the gaze as he set the raven on the ground with as gentleness and control as he could muster at the moment, before he wrapped his hands around the cursed sword and stood up, wine red glaring down at storm gray. "Tell them yourself."

At that, a breathy laugh rushed out of Hijikata's chest.

"You wouldn't tell them… either way."

"Mhm."

The hint of an annoyed smile that Gin had somehow at some point grown accustomed to finally lifted the corner of the commander's lips, even as his eyes closed.

"Stupid diabetic…"

Gin returned the smirk with one of his own.

"Shitty mayora."

As he walked away from the commander whose heart continued to struggle for a last reunion with his family, Gin's fists clenched harder around the hilt of the katana. Stupid sword was apparently so important. Didn't even have a name or anything. His own body was worn out from blood loss, and the edges of his vision would occasionally blur, but the irrational anger that was rising in his chest drowned out it all. If he didn't stop it soon, Gin knew, it would consume him.

The echoes of his steps grew louder and louder in his ears, the rush of his blood a thrumming war drum in his body. If he really tried, he could stop it, he'd trained himself to for the past decades.

But then again…

"Ready to come out and play?"

Why would he want to?

"Shiroyasha."

* * *

Gin didn't give a shit about what would happen to Takasugi as he stumbled through the forest after having left the one-eyed man in a pool of his own blood. Right now, he needed to move, and fast, because even the most stubborn of stubborn bastards may not be stubborn enough to survive after being stabbed through the heart on top of month-old torture wounds. Swerving sharply, Gin narrowly avoided slamming into a tree trunk before breaking the tree line and staggering into the open field adjacent the side wall of the Shinsengumi HQ, only to have the first thing to come into his sight be a bored figure twirling the ends of his long, vermillion braid. The movement didn't stop when blue eyes met Gin's, but a long, shrill whistle launched into the night, and all the commotion behind the walls screeched to a halt save for a young, annoyed voice that calmed the silver samurai's sudden anxiety of what the yato may had done to his sister.

"Kamui you bastard! Come back and get me out of here!"

Following that, though, Kagura's enraged cries were drowned out again when the aliens that currently had the headquarters under siege threw themselves out of the shattered front gate, the river flowing past Gin before finally ending with the baldy's brat, who gave Gin one last characteristic smile and salute before the night swallowed him. How the entire hella huge army all poofed or what they're gonna do next, Gin had no idea, but as the situation is right now, he's sure no one would give a crap anyway. For all he cared, they can go take care of Takasugi or whatever.

Footsteps sounded from beyond the gate, most likely everyone coming out to see why the enemy had suddenly just up and left. Kagura's voice followed them out.

"You guys! Can you at least dig me up first?!"

So that's what he did to the poor girl.

The gorilla and sadist were the first out the door, followed by Shinpachi, the afro guy, the spy, and the rest of the tax robbers. "Oi Toushirou." They stopped dead when they saw him.

"Still alive?"

* * *

He practically grabbed him from Gin's arms, his eyes wider than any the samurai's ever seen, filled to the brim with horror and disbelief, the only thing keeping his movements at least somewhat gentle probably the fact that mayo here would only die sooner if not handled with care.

The wine red eyes of the silver samurai followed the commander as he dropped to his knees before him, his second cradled desperately in his arms. Stupid as the gorilla may be, Gin never considered that he would one day see the commander kneel in front of him. Yes, he had beaten him in a duel before (using underhanded methods, but still), but he had to admit, the samurai found this feeling of higher authority than the stalker to be strangely foreign and unwelcome, despite the fact that the man would gladly throw himself at the feet of Shinpachi's gorilla of a sister. One thing he was certain of though, Toushirou would most definitely not appreciate this. Hell, last time something like this happened (again, we don't mention the means used to achieve the end), Oogushi-Kun actively sought him out for a rematch. So for once in his life, Gin backed down from an argument they never had and will never have, physically and metaphorically.

The silver samurai took a step back, and the Shinsengumi rushed in, right as the gorilla's panic finally formed itself into words.

"TOUSHI!"

* * *

Gin saw nothing, but he heard everything.

He heard how Kondou was interrupted.

"Quick! Someone get a medic! Someone-"

"Kondo… San."

He heard the chorus of "fukuchou" that erupted from the gathered officers, most, if not all, taking an instinctive step towards the sputtering flame of the Shinsengumi.

He heard the boy's sadistic rage.

"_SILENCE._"

He heard the gorilla's desperate plea for help interrupted once again by the message Gin was supposed to deliver.

"Oi Sougo… you can finally be the vice commander. Satsified?"

"Toushi-"

'Very. But are you? Hijikata-San."

"Sougo-"

He heard him laugh again, and Gin felt something slide down the side of his face.

_Ketsuno Ana never said it was going to rain today._

* * *

Hijikata looked through a haze at his commander, the older man's hold on him a distant sensation. This man, who brought them to Edo and took them from absolute nobodies to samurai worthy of holding a katana. This man, who was stupid and a gorilla but their commander and their soul. This man, who now begged him to stay despite the fact that they both knew better.

This man, who he really didn't want to say goodbye to.

The dark mass around them shifted again, the movement drawing his gaze, and he looked at the people he was a nobody with, whom he held a katana with and yelled at and threatened and who loved him anyway

To be fair, he didn't want to say goodbye to any of them. Even Sougo, even that stupid perm.

He looked for passive wine red eyes in the crowd and found them.

Him, Gintoki. He's already heard his goodbye.

Now he has one last thing-

A breath choked in his throat, and for long moments he could not breathe, a cough pushing its way up his chest… but he was tired. So, so tired…

_One more thing._

The light shone, a familiar figure holding out his hand like he always used to, and when he reached out, Hijikata Toushirou was once again just a boy running after his brother…

Until he met the invisible barrier standing not two feet away from the man he'd wanted to see for the past decades.

_One more thing._

Gunmetal blue eyes cracked open, and he struggled to form his lips into one last smile for the man who truly deserved it.

"Kondo-San…"

_Breathe_

"Shinsengumi…"

_Breathe_

"It's been an honor."

_Goodbye_

* * *

He felt the barrier fade with his own voice, and small, childish hands finally grabbed onto the one he had been chasing ever since he was a boy. His own giggles rang silvery like bells in his ears, and the sheer joy in them awakened something inside that had been dormant for a very, very long time.

And at long last, now that he had done everything he wanted, the demon and soul of the Shinsengumi allowed his eyelids to drape down over his tired, so tired, eyes, and the heart that had beat too hard and too strong finally stopped to rest.

As his eyes closed, a single drop of water fell onto his commander's hand.

_Oh look, it's raining._

* * *

_ummmmm... oops?_

_Soooooo to reward me for maybe kind of breaking a few hearts and making it super angsty (i know i deserve punishment but please play along ;-;) please review? They are actually give me so much more motivation than you would think a few words could xD_

_But yah, please review uwu (ill still love you for reading even if you dont though, just not as much ;) )_


	6. Not To Hell

_I'm so sorry I skipped a week but it was the start of spring break and I was excited ok ;-;. Anyway, here's the last chapter of this small little story, I hope you enjoyed and thanks to all those who reviewed!_

**Reviews :3**

Reader - _I meeaaaannn, a funeral wasn't originally planned, but now that you mention it..._

Person_ \- Well... sorry to disappoint_

* * *

_**Not To Hell**_

He did not don the traditional black and white despite Shinpachi's best efforts to change his mind.

Nor did he shed the blood crusted blue and silver as he pushed open the barely repaired doors of the Shinsengumi HQ.

In fact, he had not so much as touched his closet door since their last moment of eye contact and the heavens decided to dump rain on the two of them only before unleashing the thunderstorm.

He walked through the grounds, and they parted for him, a dull streak of the silver soul walking through grief. Some watched with confusion, some anger, and some hatred.

"_But Gin-San, going to a funeral without proper attire is one of the biggest acts of disrespect one can commit."_

Like he cared.

The last of them finally stepped to the side, and a strangely solemn gorilla and sedate sadist prince came into view. The latter at least turned to acknowledge his existence, the former didn't move a muscle. Even from the back, Gin saw how tense the gorilla was, how the usually boisterous man dug his nails so deep into his palms that a thin line of red slowly slid down his finger.

Wasn't as if he didn't know Gin was there though.

"What the hell are you doing here?"

No usual biting remark was returned.

The gorilla still didn't turn, but with noticeable effort, stepped to the side.

There sat the coffin.

The thuds of his black boots were muffled by the dirt as the silver samurai made his way to the vice commander's side, dead fish maroon scorching so hard into closed gunmetal blue, as if it would trigger the peaceful brows to furrow in an annoyance and peacefully closed eyes to glare upwards at his stupid rival.

Of course, none of that happened, much to the samurai's annoyance. Peaceful brows remained peaceful, unfurrowed, vulnerable.

He looked like he was sleeping.

So peaceful.

So gods _damned_ peaceful.

So unlike the mess of a world he just left behind.

Pale fingers reached for pale features, as if he was going to so very rudely wake him from a nap, and was stopped abruptly by tan ones, with much more force than necessary.

Gintoki looked up and into the enraged eyes of the Shinsengumi commander before the man jerked him back, peaceful features disappearing from view as he slammed into the ground, dust staining silver strands.

The gruff voice sounded in his ear, or perhaps it was a memory.

"Get out of my sight."

"_Get out of my sight."_

* * *

_Kondo's hands shook. In fact, _he _shook. From head to toe, the chief of the Shinsengumi, the stupid gorilla, the loud obnoxious idiot, he shook. Not from fear of a thundering assault from Shinpachi's sister, not from happiness over some small, minuscule affair. This was different, this, Gin knew, from years of feeling the very same feeling, signified a fracturing soul._

_Those very same, shaking hands grasped desperately at the limp figure in his arms, tears finally pouring now that he'd managed to stay strong for his second's last breaths. Arms kept the dead body of Hijikata Toushirou cradled so very carefully, legs curling into his chest as he brought him closer, closer, and closer still, tears falling like raindrops onto the raven locks, soaking the vest the vice commander had worn proudly until his took his last step and made his final mark._

_Around the bloodstained silver, black-clad shoulders spasmed with silent sobs, a thunderstorm of grief and tears sweeping across the crowd, the wailing hearts of Edo's protectors ringing in the silver samurai's ears and splitting the skies._

_He moved, made his way through the dark masses, the eerie silence, his natural perm gleaming in the darkness. This time though, he knew to prepare himself, and this time, he would only be confronted with one battered and bleeding figure, except this time, the branch had already snapped, and the parrot had tumbled into the yawning chasm below. Moving past the last of them, Gin approached the gorilla's hunched figure, but before he could get within ten steps of him, the man's gaze snapped up, pinning the advancing samurai in place. The fingers that wrapped around Toushirou's shoulders tightened, and Kondo looked practically identical to a beast standing guard over the corpse of her cubs._

"_Who did this." The words rippled out like a growl, and even Gin had to fight down a shudder._

"_Kondo-Sa-" The sadist didn't finish whatever he was going to say._

"_Who. Did. This." The voice was too calm for the gorilla, and Gin felt the Shinsengumi stir. Evidently, they had never seen him this angry before._

_It almost made him afraid to tell the story._

"_He did."_

"_The hell does that mean."_

"_It means exactly what you think it does. It means a man believing himself to be weak ended it the only way he knew how."_

_Brown eyes scorched into maroon, and Gin had the feeling that Kondo was seeing through his very soul, witnessing _exactly _what had happened at the harbor, seeing Toushirou's suicidal decision and his enactment of it._

_Perhaps he was._

_His next words had Shinsengumi officers grabbing Gintoki from behind and dragging him away._

_And it was in that moment that Sakata Gintoki knew._

_"Get out of my sight."_

_Kondo Isao hated him._

* * *

He got up slowly, somewhat surprised that he hadn't been dragged and dumped outside the walls, only to come face to face with a younger, brown-haired boy.

"Danna, let's go."

One more glance at the uncharacteristic tranquility adorning the features of the bakufu's resident demon, and Gin followed Sougo out the broken doors, about to make his exit when he was stopped once again.

"If you want to see the rest of it, Danna, the wall's right there."

Those were his parting words before the sadist walked back inside.

* * *

He watched the rest of it from the wall that was right there.

The few words of farewell that all the members murmured.

The lack of nearly everyone required for atraditional funeral.

The lack of cheesy speeches and cliche "I would like to say a few words"s.

This wasn't a funeral, was it? It was just a final farewell to send him on his way.

They all fell in line. Neatly, perfectly. How he always taught them to.

"Pay your respects to the vice commander!"

In one fluid motion, Edo's protectors gave one final salute to their soft-hearted demon.

And the flames burst into life.

* * *

The kids had left him alone, Kagura following Shinpachi home when he had promptly ignored her efforts to cheer him up.

He sat on the couch, a crushed carton of strawberry milk on the table , its contents dripping off the table and pouring onto whatever poor volume of JUMP was laying next to it.

He was so going to regret that later when he runs out of money to rebuy it.

The sake bottle was almost empty, and he halfheartedly brought it up to equally empty eyes to swish it around. Some liquid bounced out the top of the bottle (no, he still doesn't know his own strength) and leapt into his eyes, at which he dropped the bottle, the thing shattering on the floor as he reached up to rub them, cursing along the way, _when the door to the Yorozuya slid open._

"_How long are you going to sulk for?"_

"_As long as I want."_

"_Tch."_

"_Don't 'tch' me you nicotine bastard."_

_A plume of smoke floated into the room, and footsteps echoed on wood, shattered glass crunching beneath black boots._

"_Oh I'm gonna do whatever the hell I want."_

_Gin glared back at annoying v-shaped bangs, only for the equally annoying owner of said bangs to blow a cloud of smoke into his face, the scent of tobacco overwhelming him._

"_Hey!" The silver samurai choked, coughing and hacking as he tried to wave the smoke away, though his efforts were sadly in vain when the bastard added a second plume._

"_Stop it!" Gin leapt off the couch, making to tackle the vice commander only to pass straight through the man, sending himself sprawling across the room and into the wall, confused, upside down, and with his dignity in shreds._

_Regaining his composure (kind of somewhat not really), Gin looked up, about to shoot another biting remark when he was greeted with the sight of a blood-drenched demon with vortexes of swirling purple for eyes, his mouth open in an enraged scream, cigarettes forgotten and a cursed blade in hand. Then he blinked and it was gone, leaving the calm and collected vice commander, though the echoes remained._

WHY THE FUCK ARE YOU HOLDING BACK

I'm not strong enough

Fight it for me

Kill me

_Another plume had him out of the trance and glaring at strangely attractive features._

"Oi."

_The raven knelt so that their noses were almost touching through the smoke._

"_Two things. One, I'll stop when you stop sulking."_

"… na"

"_Two, whatever you did with the sword, it's already gone to hell for both of us."_

"Oi Danna!"

Gintoki jerked awake, the sadist looking down at him shrinking back to narrowly avoid a collision. Sitting up, Gin stretched before flopping back down. "What do you want?"

Silence.

"You don't know, do you."

"Some of them still hadn't know what happened, the ones that happened to be on errands or were stationed elsewhere."

"And?"

"And they looked at me like I was crazy. 'Why do you call him the vice commander?' 'Where is the vice commander?' 'Isn't he the first unit captain?'

"Then they learn about what happened, and they shake their head, they say it's impossible, because 'the vice commander is a demon', because 'the vice commander is invincible'."

He was almost rambling.

"So now Zaki's work is getting nowhere because there's no one to beat some sense into him when he's playing badminton, and political affairs are a mess because no one really knows how to handle them anymore." He sighed, turning to walk out, pausing at the stairs, taking in the strips of black and white adorning the houses of the Kabuki District and all buildings as far as the eye could see.

Edo was crying.

"If it's any help," Gin joined the sadist outside. "You can tell them that he won't be going to hell anytime soon."

At that, the brown-haired teen gave the samurai a quizzical look, but didn't respond before walking down the wooden stairs.

"Stupid sword's going instead." The perm head added.

Still the new vice commander did not look back as Gin headed back inside, a smile curling the corners of his lips.

_It's already gone to hell for both of us._

He should start cleaning up, and maybe prepare an apology speech.

**FIN**

* * *

_Hey at least it ended on an upbeat note :p_

_But yah that's it! I really hope you enjoyed and if you did, please leave a review :D. Even if you didn't like it, please also tell me where I went wrong so I can improve in future writings! For example, did I go too OOC with the characters (highly likely since I don't really know Gintama characters very well)? Was the plot too cliche? Was the story not Gintama-y? Was the writing just, you know, bad? You get the idea._

_Even if you don't leave a review though, I still want to thank everyone who read this story, I know I sound so cliche rn but I really appreciate people taking the time to read my stories :)_

_I'm just rambling at this point lol, but thank you again and byebye! I'll see you in my next story._

_(i just said story way too many times)_


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